'' The US had absolutely no evidence that anyone at the highest level of the Pakistani government knew the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden,'' she told reporters in Islamabad after meeting Pakistan's military and civilian brass. Pakistani leaders, she said, had assured a probe on how bin Laden was hiding in Pakistan , adding that she would return to Washington ever more '' committed' ' to the USPak relationship.
She said after the killing of bin Laden the relations between the two countries had reached a turning point but added that the US and Pakistan need to do more to battle Islamist militancy and extremism. '' This was an especially important visit because we have reached a turning point. Osama Bin Laden is dead but al-Qaida and his syndicate of terror remain a serious threat to us both,'' she said.
'' America cannot and should not solve Pakistan's problems. That's up to Pakistan ,'' Clinton said. To mollify Pakistanis's anger over the unilateral raid in Abbottabad , Clinton acknowledged the '' sacrifices made by Pakistan's military and its citizens'' . Clinton landed in Islamabad early Friday morning amid tight security.
No traffic was allowed on any of the roads leading to the capital. She was joined in Islamabad by Adm Mike Mullen, chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff. The two first met with Pakistan president Asif Ali Zadari before sitting down with PM Yousaf Raza Gilani, Army chief Ashfaq Pervez Kiyani and ISI chief Ahmed Shuja Pasha.
Her visit came a day after US announced it was withdrawing some of its troops from Pakistan, at Islamabad's request. It was the first highlevel US visit to Pakistan since the killing of the al-Qaida leader May 2.
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